Wire-stretcher



L. F. EDWARDS. WIRE STRETCHER. APPLICATION FILED'AUG. 16, I920.

133,714,838 Patented Apr. 12,1921.

f 5 m 5 l I 5. 5 Louis 1. Edwards a .7 UNITED T tools F. EDWARDS, orNoBLn, Louisiana.

' Specification of Letters rea m; Pat t Ap 12, 1 2

Application filed August 16, 1920. SerialNo. 403,898.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, LOUIS F. EDWARDS, a

citizen of the United States, residingv at The present invention relatesto impiovements in wire stretchers, and has for an object to provide awire stretcher that is simple in construction and economical ofmanufacture, at the same time being durable and cessive hnk, asindicated 1n Fig. 2.

efiective in operation.

A further object is to produce a. comparatively light wire stretcherthat will enable an effective gripping of the chain usually employed inthe operation of devices of this character.

lnthe accompanying drawings form ng a part of this application, and inwhich similar reference symbols indicate corresponding parts in theseveral views:

Figure 1 is a fragmentary view with parts shown in elevation of a wirestretcher constructed in accordance with the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a sectional view through the clamping device.

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary plan view of the claws; and h I Fig. 1 is aperspective view of one of such claws.

Referringinore particularly to the drawings, 1 designates mesh wireforming, for instance, a fence, and 2' designates the usual chain whichis affixed to a post or other stationary object. p

In accordance with the invention a clamping device is associated withthe wire 1,

and this clamping device preferably embodies a pair of elongated thinplates 3 "and 1 preferably, though not necessarily, of oak, which areclamped upon the end of the wire 1 by means of bolts 5. Straps of ironor other metal 6 and 7 are 'afiixed to the inner faces of theplatestoone side the bolt holes so that these straps take up the wearandcome directly in contact with the wire.

One of the plates 4: carries an eye-bolt 8 to which to connect the hook9 of the. lever or handle 10. A link 11 engages perforations in the linkand handle as shown in position.

DH? a loose pivot point; other llnks 12 and 13 are connected to eyesinthe ha'ndlelO at 7 opposite sides of the pivot point and serve toloosely connect the claw bars 1 1 andlo.

in order to give the handle or lever P T T OFFICE.

These claw bars are made preferably of metal and are twistedadjacenttheir outer ends, as indicated at 16' and 17 and have formed thereon theclaws l8 and 19 extend ing from the twisted portions 'ofthe bars;

As shown in Fig. 4, the claws may be two in number on each bar, and maybe separated by .a space 19 which issubstantially of the width of theHat side of one" of the links of the chain 2, so that the clawmay engagethe adjacent edge of the next suc- In use the plates and 4 are clampedabout the end of they meshwire 1 inthe manner indicated in Figs. 2 and3, and the lever or handle 10 is connected to the clamp by means of theeye 8 and hook 9. The claws are then placed in operative relation withthe chain 2 and the handle 10 is worked back and forth so that the clawsalternately engage with the chain2; the chain 2 being connected to astationary post or the like,

will serve as a suitable abutment through The peculiar twist given tothe bars 14 and 15 unables the claws 18 and 19 to be brought in a properposition relatively to the chain 2 plex apparatus to be used, or anygreat the making of th'e'saine.

The manufacture of the clawsyfrom flat bars of metal of a character thatmaybe i I 100 twisted, gives the opportunity to employ double claws of awidth and strong character which effectually engage the chain. 2Perforations 20 are provided in the lower end of the handle to which toattach operating cables if desired, so that the handle may;

be pulled thereby in oppositedirections. The claws are inclined so as toride over the chain links in moving back to initial It is obvious thatthose skilledin the art may'vary the details of construction andarrangements of parts without departing without causing complicatedstructures to be required or a difficult come amount of time or skill tobe employed in fore I do not wish to be limited to such fea' turesexcept as may be required by the claims.

I claim:

1. A wire stretcher comprising a lever, and a pair of claws looselycarried by the lever at opposite sides of its fulcrum point, said clawscomposed of flat bars bent at substantially right angles and providedwith double and spaced teeth extending laterally therefrom,substantially as described.

2. A wire fence stretcher comprising a lever, a pair of claw barsloosely pivoted to the lever at opposite sides of" its fulcrum, saidclaw bars being bent through substantially right angles near their cuteends and having spaced apart'teeth extending of claws connected to saidlever at opposite sides of itsfulcrum point, said claws com- ")risineach a fiat bar havin one end i a 2:

thereof bent over at substantially rightv a11- gles to the plane of thebody of the bar and having bent teeth spaced apart by an intermediateslot extending downwardly from said bent portion of the bar, said clawsbeing of difiercnt lengths to engage at successive points on a chain orthe like substantially as described.

LOUIS F. ED'WARDS.

